I just have to tell someone about my worst gun show day yesterday. There is a Glock Amorer that regularly attends our local gun show. He has been helping me build my Glock 22 into a pistol especially suited for target shooting at my local indoor range. Two weeks ago I had emailed him to verify he would be at the show yesterday, and he replied that he would indeed be there. Yesterday I arrived at the gun show early as usual. I paid my $8.00 for parking. I approached the building and found the line to get into the building was approximately 1/8th of a mile long! The weather was cold with a little rain drizzle. Well I had already paid my $8, so I was committed. I stood in line for an hour before I finally got to the ticket booth to pay my $9.00 to get into the show. At this point I am already into this deal $17.00.
After I entered the show I immediately spotted the armorer's Glock banner and headed that way, making my route through the hoards of people. When I got to his booth the first thing I noticed was his work bench area was covered with parts. Not parts being worked on, but new parts in their packages. A stranger in the booth asked if I needed help. I asked him where the armorer was and if he was setting up. He told me the armorer had retired and he was the new owner. He said the armorer's retirement was sudden, that he had just decided last week.
After that bad news I just figured I might as well stroll around a bit. After all I have an investment in this gun show now. After walking around a bit I ran across another gun armorer. I had heard of him and after talking with him for awhile I decided he seemed very knowledgeable, and seemed like a really nice guy. I asked him if he could install my brand new adjustable rear sight onto my Glock 22. He said he could, and would do it for $20 provided it wasn't one of the "difficult" ones. I agreed to the deal. What followed was horrifying. He used his Glock sight pushing tool to remove the existing site. After which he placed my brand new, super trick, adjustable sight in position to install. He proceeded to press the sight into place. He was having a hard time turning the handle to complete the press. He pulled out an old 8mm rifle barrel he apparently uses as a "cheater" bar over the press's handle to add more leverage. At first this really concerned me, but then I thought, hey he's an older guy, maybe this just makes it easier for him. After about two or three turns he started having difficulty with the cheater bar in place. Now I am concerned! Suddenly there was a loud pop. I thought, OH CRAP! He said it's ok, that was just a stress noise. Well, I'm stressed, and I'm thinking that's a "broken" noise. He continued to try to complete the press. After a few minutes he took the slide out of the press. My brand new sight was ruined, and his press was broken. He told me I should contact the company that made the sight about this problem. He said he did not apply "excessive pressure" in attempting to install the sight, and nowhere on their instructions did it indicate or state the sight may need any filing to fit. I felt bad for him ( a retired guy doing this work as a side business) so I gave him th $20 for his trouble and broken tool, had him re-install my old sight (with his other press) and off I went.
After this terrific experience I found and purchased a Glock Armorer's handbook for $25. Tally for the day so far, $82. When I got home I started reading my new Glock handbook. What I read in regards to installing rear sights was, fitting is sometimes required for the installation of rear sites. Fitting should be done using a hand file. The more I read the more I felt I maybe able to complete some of the simpler work on my Glock, probably even installing a rear site. Then I pulled out my Glock 22 to study it closer. What I found was more bad news. The slide was also ruined. Where his press tool had locked the rear of the slide into place, it had bent the bottom rail channels outward on both sides! There were obvious marks on the outside of the side indicating the damaged areas, to the point where they must be close to cracking or just breaking off.
After some internet searching and reading reviews, I decided to order a new replacement slide from Lone Wolf. The cost of their slide is $209.00, less expensive than the factory Glock slide. I also ordered another new adjustable rear sight for $86. My total for the day was $377, and I'm further behind on my project than I was at the beginning of the day. Well by now, if you're still reading this, you've probably figured out that I am fairly new to hand-gunning. My experience today has left me with one burning question; is this the difference between an "Armorer" and a "Gunsmith"?
Thanks for listening.........I feel much better now..............I think................
